February 09, 2012
Playoffs analyst: Yotam Halperin, Olympiacos
Yotam Halperin - OlympiacosAlthough he's just 26 years old, two-time Euroleague champion Yotam Halperin of Olympiacos has all the experience of a true veteran. From his start as a teenage backup to Maccabi Tel Aviv's stars, through a wisely-chosen detour to Union Olimpija, then back to his boyhood club to become an All-Euroleague selection, Halperin has kept growing and succeeding. Now, in his second season at Piraeus, Halperin has staked his claim in the starting lineup and is intent on joining the Reds on a second consecutive trip to the Final Four. He is certainly doing his part, too, as perhaps the most efficient offensive player in the competition. Halperin ranks third in the Euroleague in two-point shooting accuracy (70.6%), and if not for a small lack of shot attempts, would be second in three-point shooting (53.8%) and first in free-throw shooting (95.7%). Add it all up, and it's easy to see why Halperin is aiming for his sixth Final Four as Olympiacos heads into a five-game playoffs series against Asseco Prokom Gdynia.

Yotam, after winning your regular season group and Top 16 groups, how do the Reds feel about being playoff favorites, too?

"Of course, we have the homecourt advantage and everyone sees us as the favorites in the series, but I think our players are experienced enough and we have seen so many surprises in the Euroleague this season that we are not going to underestimate Prokom. We respect their team. They have great players who do great things on the court. We'll have to be ready to do our best against them, and first of all take care of our two home games to start the series."

Are you surprised to find a playoff first-timer like Prokom waiting for you?

"To see Prokom in the top eight teams, with one series between them and a chance to go to the Final Four is a surprise, yes. But that just means they have a good team. It's not like someone gave them this chance as a present. They won great games, they beat great teams and they are definitely good enough to be here. They deserve it."

You guys beat Prokom twice, rather easily, in the Top 16 last season, and the rosters haven't changed greatly since then. Can what happened last year have an impact now?

"To think that we won easily a year ago doesn't say anything about this season and this series. They changed their team some, we changed too, of course. But most important is that we are both starting now 0-0 and it's going to be tough from the first minute until the end. Beating them last year was nice, but no one is looking backward."

What do you know about Prokom that will be on your mind before the series starts?

"From what we've seen so far, they have a similar roster as last year, although they've changed a few guys. They still have Daniel Ewing, Qyntel Woods and David Logan leading the team as scorers. What's different now, maybe, is that their role players are doing a great job. They have an aggressive, scoring team that runs the court very well. As I said, I believe the home games have to be the difference for us in the series. If we win those, it will make things easier, because Prokom in their own gym is very dangerous, but they are the kind of team that can be dangerous anywhere."

What's the difference between Olympiacos now and a year ago when the club was trying to reach its first Final Four in a decade?

"The fact that many of us are playing our second year together helps a lot. It's not easy to build a completely new team in one season. We also have three guys - Josh Childress, Milos Teodosic and Linas Kleiza - who are consistently playing great for us. Linas has been a big force for us in the four position. But the big thing is the fact that in every game, any of our 12 guys can step up and play great gives us the force we need to play well against very good teams. We have such experienced players that we will be ready for anything."
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Euroleague.net
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